Republic of Congo: QPI moves into upstream

Qatar Petroleum International (QPI) has invested in Total E&P Congo through a 15% share capital increase that will help fund the $10bn Moho Nord project. Traditionally downstream focused, QPI’s only other sub-Saharan African upstream involvement is a 20% stake in Total’s Ta7 and Ta8 blocks in Mauritania, acquired in 2007. In recent years, the company has sought to expand, often via reciprocal deals, farming into the overseas fields of international oil companies which operate in Qatar.